Gabriella's Pride
by Baby Doll Buffy
Summary: A powerful being steps into Buffy and Angel’s relationship.


Title: Gabriella's Pride

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, it all belongs to Joss (he is evil but he is a god nonetheless), the WB, Fox, and Mutant Enemy (Grrr Arrrg). Please don't sue, I have no money!

*~*~*

Buffy ignored both Xander and Giles as they approached her after the fight. Her mind, her soul, her entire being was focused on her search…her search for him.

She scanned the area again, peering through the smoke, trying her hardest to see beyond it, hoping that the other side would bring joy rather than sorrow. 

Xander had told her he'd made it through the fight. That had been both a relief and a downer. If he'd died, it wouldn't be so hard to say goodbye. To have him physically taken from her, as in death, would be so much lighter on her heart than having him _choose _to leave her.

Buffy was surprised she could process such thoughts, what with her 'fire bad, tree pretty' brain capacity at that time. So she just continued her search.

Then she turned to her right, and he was there.

Standing, maybe fifty feet away, a thin blanket of smoke the only barrier between them. Their eyes locked. Buffy shivered as his gaze held her, captured her, pulled her in. She refused to move. Her feet remained glued to the floor. It was his decision. He wanted to leave.

Angel's gaze washed over her, his brows creasing in concern at the cut over her eye. Buffy kept her face void of emotion, letting through only the most obvious one…devastation. 

They held this gaze for what seemed like an eternity. Then he moved. Buffy's heart jumped, and it took every inch of her not to scream "No!" But he turned, after giving her one last, heartbreaking look, and walked away. Walked out of her life.

Buffy's heart beat like a drum and her eyes filled with tears as she watched the only man she'd ever love walk away.

*~*~*

Meanwhile, far above, in a land where the ground was soft, white cloud, and the inhabitants all wore white and had long, majestic wings behind them, a defiant young woman stood in front of a table. Behind the table sat five glaring Gods.

"You must understand that we cannot grant you this wish!" one of the Gods declared. "You are too young, too inexperienced, to be interfering with lives, Gabriella!"

"No, you don't understand!" Gabriella argued. "These two are different. I'm spiritually linked, I know I am. I can feel it. And their love. My god, I can feel their love. It is so pure, so true, so chaste. How can you deny two great warriors such happiness!!"

"Because it is not meant to be!" stated a second God. "They come from different worlds."

"She a Slayer, he a vampire," continued a third. "They walk on different paths."

"But it could be different!" Gabriella cried. "It _has_ to be! They are so deeply in love, my Gods, why can we not grant them normalcy, the one thing they both long for?"

"What?!" bellowed the first god. "And lose two of our greatest warriors? It is unthinkable!"

"Why do you trouble yourself over this so, young Gabriella?" asked a fourth God. "You are so new and innocent, you should be enjoying your life, not tormenting yourself over others'."

"Yes, but they're different!" Gabriella cried. "You don't understand. This feeling…it…it boils through my veins…this is my calling, I know I am supposed to help them!! I can feel it, that if we do not give them this, their lives will crumple. They will go out and die because their unhappiness is distracting them. Or would you rather wait, hmmm? Wait until they are driven so insane by their longing for one another that they take their own lives? They will commit suicide and become children of Satan!!!"

"ENOUGH!!!" the Gods all bellowed. "You do not use that name in this world, young lady, or you will be condemned to his."

Gabriella gasped and shrinked back. "I…I'm so sorry, my lords," she murmured. "Please, forgive me."

The Gods talked among themselves momentarily, then turned back to Gabriella. "Very well," the fifth said. "In spite of your severe disrespect for both us and your world, we have decided to grant you your wish to help the warriors. After all, it is we who they serve, and losing them would, I'm sure, prove to be quite disastrous."

Gabriella smiled jubilantly. "Oh, thank you so much! And I won't fail you, I swear."

She rushed from the chamber, and the Gods couldn't help but smile.

*~*~*

Angel was driving. He was on the road, preparing to leave Sunnydale behind, when a female form suddenly appeared in the seat next to him.

Angel swore and nearly swerved off the road and into the path of an oncoming truck, but Gabriella's lightning-quick reflexes grabbed the wheel and steadied the vehicle.

"What do you want?" Angel asked.

Gabriella laughed softly. "Oh, Angel, I know how much you pride yourself on your wonderful ideas. So I'll be frank. This idea? Not quite so wonderful."

"What are you talking about? Who are you?" Angel demanded.

"I'm Gabriella," she answered. "I'm an angel. Your angel. And her angel."

"What do you want?" Angel asked.

Gabriella sighed. "Look, Angel, you can't do this."

"Do what?"

"Leave. Leave her, leave your old life-"

"Life?" Angel chuckled. "I have no life, remember? I'm dead."

"She gives you life," Gabriella pressed. "Yes, without her, you truly are dead. And we can't afford that." 

"Who can't?"

"Me. The other angels. The gods. See, without Buffy, you're nothing. Without you, she's nothing. Without each other, the two of you will surely die."

"With me, she'll die."

"Wrong," Gabriella retorted. "You give each other strength. You carry each other forward, and I'm telling you, if you don't turn this car around, your honey back in Sunnydale will be offing herself before you can say 'Hell on Earth'."

Angel sighed. "Why should I believe you."

Gabriella smiled. "Hold still," she commanded. She placed a finger to each of Angel's temples, then took hold of the steering wheel as his visions began.

Gabriella knew what he was seeing, and felt sorry for him. It was pretty awful, and it ended in Buffy's death, something that Angel had feared since the day he met her.

When the visions finally stopped, Angel was gasping for breath, and there were tears in his eyes.

"Buffy…" he whispered. And he grabbed the wheel back and spun the car around. He started back for Sunnydale.

"And one more thing," Gabriella said as she began to fade away. "You're a human. Gift from those of us above. We figured it's much better to have a warrior in the daytime as well. But you've still got all your vampire strengths. Good luck with the Slayer." And she faded to nothing.

*~*~*

Buffy woke up that morning to see Angel sitting on the side of her bed. There was a smile on his face, and the sunlight from the open window washed over him like a golden cloak.  


And Buffy knew. She didn't know how she knew, maybe because her spidey senses weren't tingling, maybe because he was warm, but she knew. And she sat up, and they kissed deeply. 

They had their whole lives ahead of them. Together.

*~*~*

The End


End file.
